The Faroe Islands defeated Austria 1–0 on 12 September 1990 in a UEFA Euro 1992 qualifying match at Landskrona IP in Landskrona, Sweden. The result is notable as one of the biggest shocks in football history, as the Faroe Islands were playing their first ever competitive match with a team composed of amateur players, while Austria had played at the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy less than three months earlier.

Background The Faroe Islands Football Association became a member of FIFA on 2 July 1988 and joined UEFA on 18 April 1990. Austria, in turn, played at the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy less than three months earlier and were eliminated in the group stage.

Because the Faroe Islands did not have a suitable football stadium, their national team chose to play its matches in Sweden, using Landskrona IP as their home ground.

Match

Details

GK 1 Jens Martin KnudsenRB 8 Jan DamCB 4 Mikkjal DanielsenCB 2 Jóannes Jakobsen (c)LB 3 Tummas Eli HansenRM 6 Allan Mørkøre CM 9 Abraham LøkinCM 5 Julian HansenLM 7 Torkil NielsenCF 11Kurt Mørkøre CF 10Kári Reynheim Manager: Páll Guðlaugsson GK 1 Michael KonselRB 4 Jürgen HartmannCB 5 Michael Streiter CB 3 Robert PeclLB 2 Kurt RussDM 6 Heinz PeischlDM 8 Manfred Linzmaier (c)AM 10Andi Herzog AM 11Andreas Reisinger CF 7 Gerhard RodaxCF 9 Toni PolsterSubstitutions:MF 14Gerald Willfurth FW 15Peter Pacult Manager:Josef Hickersberger

Assistant referees: Kjell Nordby (Norway) Roy Helge Olsen (Norway) Fourth official: Peter Mikkelsen (Denmark)Match rules 90 minutes. Maximum of two substitutions.

Aftermath Austria coach Josef Hickersberger resigned the day after the loss. In the return fixture, played on 22 April 1991 at Salzburg, Austria beat the Faroes 3–0. Neither team managed to win against the other opponents of the group and finished at the bottom, with Austria in 4th and the Faroe Islands in 5th.

Hickersberger returned to coach the Austria national team in 2006, quitting after UEFA Euro 2008, which Austria co-hosted with Switzerland. The two teams were again scheduled to play in October at Tórshavn for the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification, and again in Group F of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification games.

References

External links Full match on Kringvarp Føroya website Video about the match on Visit Faroe Islands YouTube channel